Published 6:08 am, Thursday, June 10, 2010

Looking up the road in Texas, it's not all that unusual to see someone riding a horse. In fact, in many smaller communities the sight is quite common.

However, it's not that common in such places as Los Angeles and New Hampshire.

Linny Kenney, 28, of San Francisco doesn't seem to mind being the subject of puzzled stares and extra attention as she rides Sojourner, her white Arabian horse, from coast-to-coast.

Kenney began her journey March 1 from Los Angeles and plans to travel all the way to New Hampshire, riding Sojourner.

She paused to talk about her journey Tuesday at the home of Dr. Stephen and Roberta Turner west of Plainview.

The purpose of Kenney's journey is to connect with people who have gone through hard times in their lives and have risen above them.

Kenney's hard time began with the divorce of her parents four years ago. That difficult experience encouraged her to realize a lifelong dream.

With her parents' divorce hitting her hard, Kenney - a vocal performance major - quit singing and playing her guitar.

Trying to find something to fill the void of her father leaving, she decided to go back to her roots . . . by riding a horse.

Kenney began riding at an early age when her family lived in Houston. It was there that she rode her first horse, Gogo, what seemed to be "all the time." However, when Kenney headed off to college, she had to sell him.

Her fond memories of riding and camping as a young child gave birth to her unusual journey.

"I just remember being on a camping trip with my family and looking at my dad and asking him if I could ride my horse across the country," said Kenney, "I'm not sure exactly what he said back then, but it was along the lines of ‘Sure, I don't see why not.' "

After finding a new horse, Sojourner, at a ranch in California, Kenney began her journey.

She has been riding for more than a month now and has traveled through California, Arizona, New Mexico and, now, Texas. She rides an average of 25 miles a day and estimates that she should reach her destination in another four months.

Traveling with her is her best friend from college, Walter Rowland, a photographer.

He drives a truck carrying their camping supplies and food, which primarily consists of pasta, peanut butter and jelly and coffee "which always has to have heavy whipping cream."

Her trip expenses are covered in large part by the readers of her blog and other supporters of her journey. Kenney also is sponsored by Kent Feeds and Easy Boot Inc.

Along the way the two are collecting stories from people they meet.

When asked about some of most interesting and touching stories they have heard thus far, they list accounts of people who have gone through hard times but now have a better life outside of the hurt.

One person even told them how to make an atomic bomb.

"We met one man along the way who had lost everything," said Kenney. "He had lost his house, job and family. But he kept visiting one particular coffee shop in his town and one day a man who also visited it regularly offered his home to the man. They are now best friends and are still living together."

Kenney said she has learned that people are truly trusting, even when others think most people aren't due to how the world is changing.

"We have had people stop us on the road to ask us what we are doing, and sometimes even offer to help us out with anything we need."

Along the way Kenney's stepfather has arranged for various host homes for them to rest and take a break from camping. They also have stayed with people they happen to meet when they come into town.

Her journey came to a resting place in Plainview this week when Kenney and her friends stayed at the Turner home.

From Plainview, Kenney will travel to Frederick, Okla., to participate in a parade honoring the Abernathy Boys, two young men who traveled on horseback 2,000 miles to New York to hear President Theodore Roosevelt speak. Kenney thought it was fitting to her journey and is excited to make the 10-day trip to her next destination.

Kenney said the best parts of her journey are being close to nature and being with a horse again.

"Being with the land and seeing it change is amazing, and it's not just me that notices it, ‘Soj' notices things that I sometimes don't see right off. What most people think is that the land changes and so does the people, but the people are always nice, friendly and trusting; the land is what changes."

Throughout the trip Kenney and "Soj" have experienced blazing heat, snowstorms and horrible winds. But through it all, Kenney considers it a beautiful and wonderful experience.

She said she has learned on her journey that you can never do things alone.

"We are tougher than we think we are, but you can't always do everything alone. People need each other and the moral support. We have appreciated everything that the people we have met have done for us."

Kenney said she may write a book about her journey and include all of the stories that have been sent in or they have heard while traveling, but for now she and her companions are enjoying the ride.